Space-Time Block Coding (STBC) for Wireless Networks

Wireless designers constantly seek to improve the spectrum efficiency/capacity, coverage of wireless networks and link reliability. Space-time wireless technology that uses multiple antennas along with appropriate signalling and receiver techniques offers a powerful tool for improving wireless performance. More advanced MIMO techniques are planned for future mobile networks in wireless Local Area Network (LANs) and Wide Area Network (WANs). Multiple antennas when used with appropriate Space-Time Coding (STC) techniques can achieve huge performance gains in multipath fading wireless links. The Space Time Coding has evolved as a most vibrant research area in wireless communications. Recently, Space-Time Block Coding (STBC) has been trying to incorporate in the forthcoming generation of mobile communication standard which aims to deliver true multimedia capability. This paper presents the Space-Time Block Codes (STBC) for wireless networks that uses multiple numbers of antennas at bothtransmitter and receiver. The simulations have been done in MATLAB. The STBC which includes the Alamouti Scheme as well as an orthogonal STBC for 4 transmit antenna case has been simulated and studied.